Many aggressive riders complain about the
bend of the stock Indy handlebars, especially after riding another brand with
straighter bars. Changing handlebars is not a particularly easy job, mainly
because of the handwarmers. But if you have some other reason to take the grips
or warmers off and you don't like the stock bars, you ought to consider changing
them at that time. It's a cheap mod and like I said, if the grips/warmers are
off for some other reason, it's easy to change them.

I put on a set of '98 XC bars which are a
bit straighter and therefore slightly wider. I didn't notice much of a
difference and if I had it to do over again now, I'd look at a set of ZR bars or
maybe a set of MX bike handlebars. Too late now - I'm not about to sacrifice a
set of grips and warmers, but if they're ever off again for some other reason .
. . . just keep in mind that with straight bars, opening and closing the hood
might be an adventure, not to mention clearance between the bars and the
windshield when turning.

To replace the bars you need to remove
the brake master cylinder, the throttle, the dimmer switch and the handlebar pad
first. Then take the old bars off by removing the four bolts that hold the bars
in the block and attach the block to the end of the steering shaft. Putting the
new bars in is an exercise in parts juggling. The trick for me was to get a
couple of bolts in and get the nuts on a couple of turns while letting the bars "flop" loose. Once you have the bolts on part way, then you can move
the bars up to their final position and tighten the bolts.

Put the dimmer switch, master cylinder
and throttle back on next, but leave the pad off until you have adjusted the
bars to your liking. Then tighten them down, put the pad back on and then
install the warmers and grips and you're set to go.

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